Culinary Rotation
Sodexo Dietetic Internships offers interns to chose between several concentrations. My chosen concentration was Culinary, in which I spent 6 extra weeks at my foodservice site, Point72 Asset in Stamford, CT, acting as a Chef and leading food demonstrations for different topics. Topics included Gluten-Free, Sports Performance, Low-fat, International Cuisine, Heart Healthy, Vegan, Seasonal Cuisine, and Everyday Nutrition. A few food demos included a table set up inside the cafeteria, while most took place at our "Action Station". I spent everyday of this rotation cooking for the cafeteria and strengthening my culinary, time-management, and recipe development skills.
I was extremely lucky cooking at this site as I had full freedom in deciding what foods I was able to prepare, giving me a broad experience. I prepared a variety of different cultural cuisines such as curries, noodle bowls, soups, and even sushi! I introduced fun vegetables into the kitchen such as garlic scapes, watermelon radishes, rainbow carrots, and fiddlehead ferns. I'm so thankful for the culinary skills I gained for this rotation as it truly sets me apart from other candidates.
I was extremely lucky cooking at this site as I had full freedom in deciding what foods I was able to prepare, giving me a broad experience. I prepared a variety of different cultural cuisines such as curries, noodle bowls, soups, and even sushi! I introduced fun vegetables into the kitchen such as garlic scapes, watermelon radishes, rainbow carrots, and fiddlehead ferns. I'm so thankful for the culinary skills I gained for this rotation as it truly sets me apart from other candidates.
Community Rotation
My community rotation was spent performing a variety of responsibilities at different sites such as:
- Menu development for Meals On Wheels (following CACFP requirements)
- Menu development for Headstart Programs (following CACFP requirements)
- Assisting with Food Demos at multiple community locations
- Assisting with Kids Cooking Classes at multiple community locations
- Assisting with Adult Cooking Classes at a local Grocery Store
- Visiting new Meals on Wheels participants at their home to assess their needs
- Running a Nutrition Education table at a local Farmer's Market while handing out Seasonal Recipes
- Running the "Super Squash Tent" at my former employers farm, educating guests about the nutritional benefits of Squash and preparation methods.
- Providing nutrition education presentations to children, adults, and older adults
- I even helped with a food demo for a segment on a local news station!
Two of my favorite experiences included working at the Farmer's Market and a local farm I used to work for.
I spent a few Saturdays at a Farmer's Market in downtown Milford, CT handing out seasonal recipes and educating market-goers about the benefits of buying seasonal food. My goal was to provide nutrition information and encourage guests to go home with a few extra produce items. I brought different recipes every weekend, all featuring produce currently being sold at the market. I was especially focused on promoting produce that was mostly unfamiliar, such as kohlrabi!
This was an amazing experience as I was able to collaborate with the farmer's selling at the market. Every week they would let me know what they expected to be selling the following weekend, and I would write recipes accordingly.
I spent a few Saturdays at a Farmer's Market in downtown Milford, CT handing out seasonal recipes and educating market-goers about the benefits of buying seasonal food. My goal was to provide nutrition information and encourage guests to go home with a few extra produce items. I brought different recipes every weekend, all featuring produce currently being sold at the market. I was especially focused on promoting produce that was mostly unfamiliar, such as kohlrabi!
This was an amazing experience as I was able to collaborate with the farmer's selling at the market. Every week they would let me know what they expected to be selling the following weekend, and I would write recipes accordingly.
At Jones Family Farms, I spent some time acting as the "Squash Expert" educating guests about anything and everything regarding squash from taste, to nutritional profiles, to preparation methods. The Squash tent included giant bins of 10-12 varieties of different squash, and was decorated with props and over a dozen of both mine and the farms squash recipes. It was amazing to experience how a simple educational conversation can really get people excited to try new vegetables!
My interest and knowledge of the agriculture, and culinary nutrition served me well during this rotation and truly sets me apart from other professionals.
My interest and knowledge of the agriculture, and culinary nutrition served me well during this rotation and truly sets me apart from other professionals.
Clinical Rotation
I was fortunate to spend my Clinical rotation at UConn John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington, CT. UConn is a teaching hospital with 6 floors and an outpatient pavilion. I provided assessments, follow-ups, consults, and educations in the following settings:
The disease states that I was mostly exposed to were related to renal, cardiac, diabetes, and oncology. Going into this experience, I wasn't sure what disease state I would have the most interest in, but I've come out with a deep interest in oncology. The complexity of cancer development, prognosis, and treatment is extremely fascinating and involves such an individualized approach.
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
- Hematology/Oncology Inpatient Unit
- Oncology Outpatient
- Diabetes & GI Outpatient
- Intensive Care Unit
- Psychiatric Unit
- Cardiac/Intermediate Unit
- Surgical Unit
- General Medicine Unit
The disease states that I was mostly exposed to were related to renal, cardiac, diabetes, and oncology. Going into this experience, I wasn't sure what disease state I would have the most interest in, but I've come out with a deep interest in oncology. The complexity of cancer development, prognosis, and treatment is extremely fascinating and involves such an individualized approach.